We’ve never been in business class. Rosa has to explore everything and figure what she’s allowed to do and how to get away with what she isn’t.

The flight attendants love her. Flight attendants always slove Rosa. Most strangers do. She’s ten years old with blonde ringlets, big blue eyes, and dimples she can turn on and off like, well, like pushing a button.

We’ve never been in business class. Rosa has to explore everything and figure what she’s allowed to do and how to get away with what she isn’t.

The flight attendants love her. Flight attendants always love Rosa. Most strangers do. She’s ten years old with blonde ringlets, big blue eyes, and dimples she can turn on and off like, well, like pushing a button.

Rosa looks like a doll; Rosa is not a doll.

Che and his family are on their way to New York, for his dad’s new job. Che wishes they could have stayed in Australia this time, rather than moving overseas again. At home in Sydney, he had friends, he has a boxing gym he loves, he has a life. In New York, he has to begin all over again: new school, new friends, new gym. And Rosa. Rosa, his gorgeous, smart, funny little sister is a psychopath. And it seems he’s the only one who can keep her in line. But no matter how much he shadows her, Rosa has plans of her own. As Che becomes more settled in their new home, their new city, Rosa’s antics become more complex, more dangerous. How can he make others believe what he knows?

My Sister Rosa begins in a plane, en route to New York, as Rosa behaves much like any ten-year-old girl, experiencing business class for the first time. Che’s concerns about her behaviour feel overblown but fairly typical for an older brother. The first-person voice ensures the reader only has Che’s perspective and has to work out whether or not he is reliable in his depiction of their life, of his sister’s behaviour. What is clear, is that he’s keen to have his own life, to box, to have a girlfriend, to go home. He loves his sister, loves his family but New York is going to test them all. My Sister Rosa is a rich, complex, unsettling and compelling novel. Recommended for secondary readers.

Three Guardians to find, all in different corners of Alban; three branches of knowledge to master; and then, the disparate talents of humankind and Good Folk to be brought into an alliance strong enough to stand up against the might of Keldec and his Enforcers…all that in a scant year and a half? When I had thus far failed to exchange even one word with the Folk Below? It was…I must not say impossible. I was one of Regan’s rebels now, and I must not even think it. ‘Ill try my best,’ I said.

Safe in the shelter of Shadowfell, the rebel base, Neryn is rebuilding her strength and learning what her skills as Caller might be able to achieve. She knows that, if she can master her gift, she will be a powerful tool for the rebels to defeat the King and free Alban of his tyranny. But mastering her gifts will take time, and suddenly time is something she doesn’t have. If the Rebels’ plan is to work, she has only eighteen months to learn what she needs to know, and gain the support of the Good Folk.

As soon as winter ends, Neryn is on the road, seeking out the three Guardians who can teach her what she needs to know. Each is in a remote corner of Alban, and travelling in a kingdom where her magical skills are perilous should they be discovered is difficult. Her companion is Tali, a fighter who will defend her with her life, but who would rather be elsewhere. As they travel, both face challenges which will test them beyond their limits.

Raven Flight is the sequel to Shadowfell, and the second in the trilogy. For a reader new to the series, it doesn’t take long to get caught up in the tale, though reading the first would be an advantage, and, one suspects, rewarding. Marillier’s characters are engaging, the world captivating and the story tightly woven. Whilst, as is necessary in a trilogy, the ending leaves the reader wanting more, the end point is in itself satisfying, with enough of this instalment resolved, and equally enough hints at what is yet to come.

When James stops for fuel in the Blue Mountains, he doesn’t expect to also pick up a hitchhiker. But Sophie is pretty determined, and soon he has a passenger. He’s heading into the country for his first teacher training placement, and she’s heading home – to visit her mother, she says. But Sophie is not the sort of girl James is used to spending time with…

‘How about we toss a coin? Heads, it’s west and a lift. Tails, it’s still west, but no lift.’

When James stops for fuel in the Blue Mountains, he doesn’t expect to also pick up a hitchhiker. But Sophie is pretty determined, and soon he has a passenger. He’s heading into the country for his first teacher training placement, and she’s heading home – to visit her mother, she says. But Sophie is not the sort of girl James is used to spending time with. She has an attitude to match her wild hair and her black painted fingernails. James isn’t like that. He’s a conscientious student who lives with his parents. Yet as they travel together the pair form an unlikely friendship – and both reveal the secrets they’ve been keeping.

Black Painted Fingernails is a wonderful road-trip story using the alternating viewpoints of the two protagonists as well as occasional chapters from the viewpoint of one of James’ parents, who are facing their own challenges. Both Sophie and James are honest and, at times, self-deprecating, and their voices are tinged with humour even at difficult moments.

Dealing with issues of family relationships and parental expectations, as well as with friendship, this is an absorbing, uplifting read.

Once, Col and Riff worked side by side as they lead the revolution which saw the Filthies liberated. Now, though, it seems they hardly see each other. A saboteur on board the juggernaut is causing suspicion and hatred and the Filthies have turned on the remaining Swanks. Col has cause to wonder if he and Riff can ever be partnered, but worse, it seems the Swanks are not safe on board the Liberator…

Something bad had happened on First Deck. The news travelled the length and breadth of the iron juggernaut: from the storage decks to the old Imperial Staterooms, from the coal bunkers on Bottom Deck to the Bridge on Fifty-Fourth Deck. The saboteur had struck again, and the Revolutionary Council had called a general meeting of Filthies in the Grand Assembly Hall.

Once, Col and Riff worked side by side as they lead the revolution which saw the Filthies liberated. Now, though, it seems they hardly see each other. A saboteur on board the juggernaut is causing suspicion and hatred and the Filthies have turned on the remaining Swanks. Col has cause to wonder if he and Riff can ever be partnered, but worse, it seems the Swanks are not safe on board the Liberator. Then, when other juggernauts hear of the revolution, it seems their relationship is the least of their problems.

Liberator is the terrific steam-punk sequel to Worldshaker and will delight teen readers, regardless of whether they’ve read the first. There is action, humour and plenty of intrigue, as characters new and old develop and change.

Lovers of history will enjoy seeing the similarities and differences with real world places and events, with the English passengers of the Liberator (once known as the Worldshaker) visiting the colony of Botany Bay, and battling with juggernauts from Russia, Austria, Turkey and France.

15-year-old Winter is as shocked as anyone in her small community when Amanda Clarke’s body is found floating in the river. Not that she is a close friend of Amanda’s, but it’s a small place and everyone is known. Besides, her brother Joe is part of a small group that hung out with Amanda. Amanda is a golden girl…

I’m not sure who found Amanda Clarke’s body. I think it was her mother, but I may be wrong.
I imagine it was dinnertime, and she called them both – ‘Amanda, Daniel, come to the table now’ – used to receiving no answer. Putting her glass down, the ice clinking, she wiped her damp hands on the edge of a tea towel, and wandered through to the family room where Daniel lay on his stomach, the seagrass matting pressing a pattern into the pale skin on his arms, chin resting in his hands as he watched the last of Get Smart.

15-year-old Winter is as shocked as anyone in her small community when Amanda Clarke’s body is found floating in the river. Not that she is a close friend of Amanda’s, but it’s a small place and everyone is known. Besides, her brother Joe is part of a small group that hung out with Amanda. Amanda is a golden girl. She has everything, wealthy parents and strong friendships with everyone who matters. But no one seems able to tell if her death was accidental, suicide or intentional. As rumours ripple around the community, they disturb other secrets and show Winter how little is as it seems. Winter tells her story in first person, partly through diary entries where she discovers how few ‘facts’ are actually irrefutable.

Darkwater is set in the early 70’s, perhaps in a time when a small community is on the brink of change. Developers are keen to transform vacant land into housing, their eyes fixed on huge profits. Environmentalists are forging relationships with builders to keep common land available to all. Women are emerging from the kitchen to have their say. It is a time of change. And like the turning of the tide that is a daily feature of life next to this river, the same world can be a very different place depending on where you sit. There are themes of family, of ‘progress’ of women’s rights. Darkwater is a crime novel, a coming of age novel, a portrait of a period in history and a study in the impressions we create. Recommended for middle-secondary readers and beyond.

Aaron Rowe has a new job – training to be a funeral director. Luckily Aaron isn’t scared of death. What he is scared of is losing Mam, who grows further away from him every day. And he’s also pretty scared that his sleepwalking habit is going to land him in a lot trouble. If he can’t figure out the truth about his past, he might never get over the terrible dreams which torment his sleep…

You wake in the middle of the night, your arms and feet pinned by strong hands. As you thrash your way to consciousness, a calm voice says, ‘Steady, we’re here to help.’ Your mind registers a paramedic, a policeman, an ambulance. You are lying on the lookout at Keeper’s Point, the lookout Amanda Green supposedly threw herself off, and you have absolutely no idea how you got there.

Aaron Rowe has a new job – training to be a funeral director. Luckily Aaron isn’t scared of death. What he is scared of is losing Mam, who grows further away from him every day. And he’s also pretty scared that his sleepwalking habit is going to land him in a lot trouble. If he can’t figure out the truth about his past, he might never get over the terrible dreams which torment his sleep.

The Dead I Know is Scot Gardner at his finest. Managing to be funny, scary, sad and exhilarating all in the same book is hard. Doing it sometimes all on the same page is even harder. Aaron is a troubled teen with a difficult past and a ton of problems in the present, yet he is likeable and even positive in the face of some pretty tough stuff. His story is one which grips and doesn’t leave you alone.

Bee has a summer job working in the taxidermy department of the museum – and she loves it. That is until her supervisor, Gus, is found dead in the Red Rotunda. Gus has apparently committed suicide, but Bee is not convinced. Something is not right and she is going to use her sleuthing skills…

‘Most of you will already have heard that Gus, our Head Taxidermist, died last night,’ said Akiko Kobayashi, the museum Director, her knuckles white on the wooden lectern.
Bee sat next to Toby in the back row of the auditorium where the museum held public lectures and forums. The other staff members were dotted around the room, sitting in groups of two or three. Some were crying. Bee felt as if she couldn’t blink. The only other part of her body that had any feeling was the hand Toby was holding. Gus was dead?

Bee has a summer job working in the taxidermy department of the museum – and she loves it. That is until her supervisor, Gus, is found dead in the Red Rotunda. Gus has apparently committed suicide, but Bee is not convinced. Something is not right and she is going to use her sleuthing skills – learnt from a lifetime of reading Nancy Drew and Agatha Christie novels – to figure it out.

Along the way she has the help of Toby, a handsome boy who was with her on the night Gus died, and who seems to be a font of knowledge when it comes to strange animal behaviours. As she tries to solve the mystery, Bee must also deal with her conflicting emotions about Toby, her slightly odd mother and her new boyfriend, and the fact that her best friend seems to have paired up with Bee’s boyfriend.

A Pocketful of Eyes is a funny, clever mystery book with a liberal does of romance and plenty of humour. Bee is intelligent and funny, but she also makes silly mistakes and has the self absorption typical of a teenager, and with which readers will relate. Wilkinson is a versatile author, and fans will love this dip into mystery writing .

Niromi is the older daughter in a middle class Sri Lankan family, living a life of stability and privilege. She attends a good school and her family hope she will become a doctor. But around her, there are rumblings between the ruling Sinhala and the minority Tamil…

Concealed by the shadow of a large water tank, I sat on the heel of my right foot. The air was sweetly pungent with the smell of ripening bananas and palmyra fruit. Cicadas buzzed relentlessly as a blazing sun rose to evaporate the condensed dew in the fields we had just scurried through. The small sparsely-populated village was luscious with its manioc and banana plantations, palm trees, and water birds in flight. But all this was lost on our small platoon of twenty-two; over half of us young women. Appreciation of beauty is a luxury of the untroubled mind.

Niromi is the older daughter in a middle class Sri Lankan family, living a life of stability and privilege. She attends a good school and her family hope she will become a doctor. But around her, there are rumblings between the ruling Sinhala and the minority Tamil. Until now Niromi hasn’t really been aware of difference, but once she begins to look, her world changes. As she moves through her teenage years, she feels the injustices more and more until finally she sees that the only way to move forward to peace and equality, is via the Tamil Tigers. This puts her at odds with her family and many of her local community, but she feels that if she is to hold her head high, she must actively fight.

Tamil Tigress is not just a picture of one young woman’s fight, but of a culture torn apart by differences. Many in the minority Tamil communities feel pressure and there are many groups that spring up to fight for equality. But while they are united in feeling oppressed, there is no unity in their approach. This leads to infighting and fighting between freedom groups. In the middle is a teenager, passionate about her country and her people, but confused by the infighting, and horrified by the deaths of her friends and close allies. Sri Lanka appears a beautiful country with a rich history, but when even its name is perceived as an attempt to ‘de-Tamil’ its legacy, it must have some way to go to achieve lasting peace. An interesting, and deeply personal memoir of a life in Sri Lanka.

The day the world ended began sunny and bright. There was no lightning, no thunder. No fiery comets soared across a darkening sky. No ravens screeched. No frenzied dogs barked, except for Winston, the dog next door. He always barked – morning, noon and night – which made the last day of the world seem exactly the same as any other day.

When they go for their favourite early morning swim on the 21st of September, Annie and Mac don’t think anything is different about the day. But a strange flash of light under the water alerts them that something – everything – is wrong. Out of the water they discover that they are the only ones from their home town alive. Soon it becomes apparent that the whole of humanity has been wiped out, except for them.

For a whole terrible day the twins try to unravel what has happened, how they will survive alone – and why it is them who remain alive. But when they wake up the next morning they discover they have gone back in time, till before the extinction took place. Now they have the opportunity to find other teens who also survived the extinction, and figure out a way to stop it ever happening. But there is someone who will do anything to stop them – someone who wants the human race obliterated.

The Day the World Ended is the first in an exciting new series for teens, based on the premise of a group of teens who are able both to survive an extinction and to travel through time. As they attempt to locate the other teens, Annie and Mac also try to unravel the mysteries of how they survive, what it is that will wipe out the human race and how they can stop it from happening.

Marcus’s dream holiday involves staying at home and playing his favourite computer game. But when his Mum buys a musty old caravan and drags him off to the beach, Marcus finds himself wandering into OTHER people’s dream holidays – which, in addition to being bizarre, soon turn out to have a dangerous side! Accompanied by his Mum and some new family friends (including a prototype robot), Marcus unwillingly embarks on an adventure that’s more exciting than any computer game.

‘Oh, wow…’ Edison breathed.

Together he and Marcus stepped through the door onto a smooth stretch of green lawn. To their right, an enormous carousel was spinning on its mirrored axis, pumping a cheerful, chiming song. To their left, a row of painted clown heads swung from side to side in front of a wall hung with alluring prizes: plush toys, kewpie dolls, inflatable aliens…

‘Hello, Edison!’ They chorused. ‘Do you want to win a stuffed blue gorilla?’

Marcus’s dream holiday involves staying at home and playing his favourite computer game. But when his Mum buys a musty old caravan and drags him off to the beach, Marcus finds himself wandering into OTHER people’s dream holidays – which, in addition to being bizarre, soon turn out to have a dangerous side! Accompanied by his Mum and some new family friends (including a prototype robot), Marcus unwillingly embarks on an adventure that’s more exciting than any computer game.

The Paradise Trap engrosses the reader in a surreal fantasy world that, surprisingly, is almost believable. With vivid imagery and a cast of relatable characters, Catherine Jinks takes the reader on an enjoyable romp through a succession of wacky settings. An exciting read for upper-primary, teenagers, and adults alike.